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What happens when you become a war refugee?

SAIW Opening Day

Want to know more about Syria and meet Syrian refugees and hear their stories and learn more about their food and culture? Then please register on the link here to show your interest in attending our ‘Open Day’. We will be launching the newly formed Syrian analytical institute of webcasting with a fun filled day for all the family with entertainment, food and stories and a chance to make new friends Registration form link and register with us.

What are the refugees’ greatest needs?

Refugees need food, clothing, health assistance, shelter, and basic household and hygiene items. They need reliable supplies of clean water, as well as sanitation facilities. They’ll need warm clothing, heaters, and heating fuel to get through the coming winter months.

The World Food Program recently had to cut food assistance to one-third of the Syrian refugees in the region, including 229,000 living outside of camps in Jordan.

Children need a safe, protective environment and a chance to play and go to school. Adults need employment options in case of long-term displacement.

Where are the refugees living?

Turkey is hosting more than 1.9 million Syrian refugees. Iraq, facing its own armed conflict, is hosting about 250,000 Syrians.

More than 1.1 million refugees are in Lebanon. Many have taken up residence there in communities’ abandoned buildings, sheds, spare rooms, garages, and in tent settlements on vacant land. Conditions are often crowded and unsanitary. Even so, families struggle to pay rent for these spaces.

About 630,000 refugees have settled in Jordan, mostly with host families or in rented accommodations. About 80,000 live in Za’atari, a camp near the northern border with Syria, and about 23,700 live in another camp, Azraq, where World Vision set up much of the water and sanitation system.

What risks do children face?

Children are especially susceptible to malnutrition and diseases related to poor sanitation. Many suffer from diarrhea diseases and dehydration.

Children are more vulnerable to sexual abuse and exploitation in unfamiliar and overcrowded conditions. Without adequate income to support their families and fearful of their daughters being molested, parents — especially single mothers — may opt to arrange marriage for girls as young as 13.

According to the U.S. State Department’s Trafficking in Persons Report 2015, warring parties in Syria forcibly recruit children to serve as fighters, human shields, and in support roles.

What is the impact on refugee children’s education?

Between 2.1 and 2.4 million school-age children are not attending school. In Syria, 5,000 to 14,000 schools have been damaged, destroyed, or occupied since 2011. The decline in education for Syrian children has been the sharpest and most rapid in the history of the region, according to UNICEF.

For refugee families that don’t live in camps, paying rent and other expenses can make it difficult for parents to afford books, uniforms, and tuition fees for their children. In some cases, children must give up school and start work to help provide for their families.

In Lebanon, the government has opened public schools to Syrian children, but language barriers, overcrowding, and the cost of transportation keep many refugee children out of school